Shoe tree



H. F. LOEWER SHOE TREE May 29, 1945.

Filed Dec. 22, 1943 Inventor Hen ryF Loe werz z Attorney Patented. May 29, 1945 SHOE TREE Henry F. Loewer, Rochester, N. Y., 'assignorto United Last C'ompany, Portland, Maine, a corporation of Maine Application December 22, 1943. Serial No. 515,226

7 Claims. (01. 12-4282) This invention relates to shoe trees and isherein illustrated as embodied in a tree of the type in which the toe piece is divided into two parts adapted to be spread apart laterally to fill the forepart of the shoe.

It is desirable, in order to avoid making many sizes of shoe trees, to have the toe piece divided longitudinally so that the two parts may be spread laterally the better to fill and tree the forepart of the shoe, thus enabling its utilization with shoes of widely varying widths. Com,- monly, the two parts which make up the toe piece are held together by screws or the like on which one of the parts is slidably mounted and the heads of which serve to limit the lateral movement. Under present restrictions, however, the use of metal in shoe trees is limited to a very small part'of the total material employed, and it becomes necessaryto devise a construction which may readily be made out of wood or some equivalent material. It will-be understood also that shoe trees of this type will be sold for use in shoes having low heels as well as in slices having high heels. Some of the shoes will have straight lasts and others will have a decided swing.

In view of these considerations, it is an object of the invention to devise a simple shoe tree construction which will be salable for use ina wide variety of shoe styles and which needs only to be made in a few sizes, thus avoiding the necessity for the retailer to maintain a large stock.

To this end, the spreading of the parts of the toe piece is accomplished by means of a loose spreader, illustrated as a wedge received in grooves in the inner faces of the two halves of the toe piece, and these grooves are inclined downwardly and forwardly. Further, in accordance with a feature of the invention, the connector between the heel piece and the toe piece acts as a thrust bar to push the wedge forward but is entirely disconnected therefrom and may be brought into engagement with the wedge in any style of shoe regardless of the height of the heel or the swing of the last by reason of the fact that it is slotted to surround one of the screws which holds the parts of the toe piece for limited spreading movement and because of the fact that it has a rounded forward end to engage the back ed e of the wedge.

These and other features of the invention will best be understood from a consideration of the following specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of the shoe tree, with portions of the toe piece-broken away and in section to show the coaction of the thrust bar and the wedge; and 1 Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the tree with the parts positioned as they would be if it were within a shoe; indicated in dash lines.

The toe piece I0 is divided longitudinally in a vertical plane to provide two parts held loosely together by pins in the form of screws l2 and I4 which are threaded in'the left-hand section I6 and slidable in the right-hand section I8 in which recesses 20 are provided to receive the heads of the screws. nected to a flat heel piece 22 by means of a link 24 which cooperates with the heel piece to'form a toggle andalso acts as a thrust bar to push forward a flat plate-like spreader 26. This spreader, here shown in the form of a wedge, is received in grooves 28 in the inner faces of the toe part sections, as shown in Fig. 1, and it will be noted from Fig. 2 that these grooves are inclined downwardly and forwardly so that. any pressure against the back edge of the Wedge tends to push the toe piece 10 firmly against/the bottom of the inside of the shoe S, indicated in Fig. 2, and has no tendency to tip it up. The link or thrust bar 24 has a slot 30 near its forward end to surround the screw l4, thus giving a freedom of action which enables the rounded forward end 32 of this thrust bar to be brought against the back edge of the wedge regardless ofthe angular relation between the toe piece l0 and the heel piece 22. It will be understood that such differences of angular relation may be required by differences in heights of heel; and differences in the swing of the last. At the same time, the fact that the screw I4 is in the slot 30 insures the proper relationship between the forward end of the thrust bar 24 and the wedge 26. It will be noted that the inner faces of the toe piece sections arerecessed at 34 and 36 to permit the toe pieceto be completely collapsed without being held apart by the thickness of the thrust bar 24.

Although it will be understood that the forepart of my novel shoe tree may be combined with a variety of heel pieces, I have illustrated herein a simple and desirable form which may be cut from ordinary lumber with a minimum of skill and which is constructed to permit relative adjustinent between the thrust bar 24 and the heel piece 22 to accommodate different lengths of shoes. For this latter purpose, a series of holes 38 have been provided to receive a headed pin 40 passing through a single hole in the rear end of the thrust 'bar. The spacing of these holes is such that,

This toe piece In is con- I between adjacent hole of the five in the lower row 1 half sizes.

cated at 42, to receive the rear end of the thrustare difierences of a full size, while the four holes of the upper row correspond to the intermediate This heel piece is grooved, as indi-,

bar.' The back end of the heel-piece is rounded 1 at 44 where it engages the inside of the rear end of the shoes, and it'l'ias' a finger hole 46' so that;

it may be lifted to the position indicated in dash lines in Fig. 2 when it is to be inserted in the shoe, and then tilted forwardly by pressure against the;

forward portion of the heel piece tocause a tog:

gle-like'action which will force the toe piece into and arranged to bearagainst said. spreader, and a heel piece connected to said thrust bar for engagement with the rear end of the shoe.

3. In a shoe tree, a toe piece divided longitudinally into two parts, a'wedge for spreading said parts to fill the shoe, a heel piece, a thrust bar interconnectingthe heel piece with the toe piece,

and mean for loosely connecting the thrust bar directly with the toe piece in position to bear against an adjacent end of the wedge.

4'. In a shoe tree, a toe piece divided into parts, a cross pin limiting the spread of said toe parts,

I a loose wedge for spreading said parts, a thrust the toe of the shoe while atthe time causa ing the member 26150 spread the parts of'the toe piece'into tight engagement with the shoe to tree it oreven, if desired,to stretch it; 'When it is desired to remove the tree from theshoe, this can readily be done by engaging the finger hole 46 and lifting the forward endof the heel piece} to break' theto'ggle. Itw'i1l be noted that the line of pressure between the point; where the thrust; bar- 24 engag s the wedge 26 and the point48: where the he'el pice engages the inside of the rear end of the shoe lies above'the connecting pin 40 thus making-in effect, a broken toggle will riotreadily be'displaced in the shoe after the'latter has been treed.

'Having' thus de'sc l, Iii-a shoetree,'a-toe piece-divided longitudi f, nally' ifitotwc partsand having'an inner surface oblique to its lor'i tudinal axis, a spreader resting against said surfalce aridcooperating Wi'ths'aid" parts and acting, upon relative ino'vement longi-j tudifially between them and the spreader, to;

thrust thl'ri laterally to fill the shoe, a-helpiece;

atransverse member rigidly attached to at least cnepa t-cfthe toe piece, and a'thrust bar inter-i I 7 bed my invention, what I claim as new and de'si e'tos'e'cure by'llztters Pat'- bar loosely surrounding said cross P and arran e to bear against said wedge, and a heel.

piece connected to said thrust bar to force it forward "toextend the Shoe.

5. In a shoe tree, a toe piece divided longitudinally into two parts, opposed grooves in the inner faces of said parts, a wedge plate received in-said grooves, the plane ofsaid grooves being inclined downwardly and forwardly, a cross pin intercom necting the rear ends of said'toe parts, a thrust bar loosely surrounding said pin and adapted to bear against said wedge, and a heel piece pivotally connected to said thrust bar to' form a toggle thereby to expand the toe piece and lengthen the tree. V t

6. In a 'shoe'tree, a toe piece divided'longitudi nally into two parts, rigid connectors betweensa-id parts limiting the spread thereof, a wedge plate forspreading said toe parts, the rear end of'said wedge 'plate extending horizontally across said connecting the heel "piece with said member and p e ememte r limitiii'g th spread of the toe parts, a

thrust bar slidabll' engaging.- said "cross member shoe tree, a flat thrust bar disposed in a' vertic'al plane and slotted to surround the fear one ofsaid connectors, the forward end of said thrust bar being rounded to bear against the rear end of-the wedge, and means connected tosaid thrust bar engaging the shoe to push the-toe piece Qf'fl'le tree into the-toe of the shoe. l q

'7. In a shoe tree, a toe piece dividedlorigitudinally' with its parts loosely connected to permit lateral movement, a'wedge" plate, grooves inth'e in'ner faces of the toe piece inclined downwardly toward the toe end thereof to receive said wedge plate, a thrust bar having'a rounded forward 'end to bear against" the wedge plateand disposed' in a vertical plane with respect-to the bottom-of the shoe, and a toggle-forming heel piece adjustably,

pivoted on the thrust bar and arranged to be pressed down to force the bar forward to spread the toepiece; V V

HENRY F. LOEWER; 

